PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Fodoulian, Leon
AU  - Tuberosa, Joel
AU  - Rossier, Daniel
AU  - Boillat, Madlaina
AU  - Kan, Chenda
AU  - Pauli, Véronique
AU  - Egervari, Kristof
AU  - Lobrinus, Johannes A.
AU  - Landis, Basile N.
AU  - Carleton, Alan
AU  - Rodriguez, Ivan
TI  - SARS-CoV-2 receptor and entry genes are expressed by sustentacular cells in the human olfactory neuroepithelium
AID  - 10.1101/2020.03.31.013268
DP  - 2020 Jan 01
TA  - bioRxiv
PG  - 2020.03.31.013268
4099  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/05/30/2020.03.31.013268.short
4100  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/05/30/2020.03.31.013268.full
AB  - Various reports indicate an association between COVID-19 and anosmia, suggesting an infection of the olfactory sensory epithelium, and thus a possible direct virus access to the brain. To test this hypothesis, we generated RNA-seq libraries from human olfactory neuroepithelia, in which we found substantial expression of the genes coding for the virus receptor angiotensin-converting enzyme-2 (ACE2), and for the virus internalization enhancer TMPRSS2. We analyzed a human olfactory single-cell RNA-seq dataset and determined that sustentacular cells, which maintain the integrity of olfactory sensory neurons, express ACE2 and TMPRSS2. We then observed that the ACE2 protein was highly expressed in a subset of sustentacular cells in human and mouse olfactory tissues. Finally, we found ACE2 transcripts in specific brain cell types, both in mice and humans. Sustentacular cells thus represent a potential entry door for SARS-CoV-2 in a neuronal sensory system that is in direct connection with the brain.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.